How to Seal Watercolor Paper for Acrylic Painting

Watercolor paper is often used outside to create plain air paintings.

Watercolor paper can be used for both watercolor and acrylic painting. You can also mix the paint types if you watercolor first. After your watercolor areas are complete, you can prime the rest of the paper with a primer and paint with acrylics on top of the primer. This gives painters a lot more flexibility with their painting techniques, colors and textures. Priming the paper is a fast process, and when done carefully, the primer will be invisible on the finished work.

Things You'll Need

• Watercolor paper
• Gesso
• Fine paintbrush
• Painter's tape
• 2-inch paintbrush

Instructions

Partial Gesso Sealing

1. Paint the watercolor areas of the painting. Allow the paint and paper to dry thoroughly.

2. Apply gesso to the paper using a small artist's paintbrush. Cover only the areas where you want to apply acrylic paint. Gesso is a white primer that is designed for correcting the finish on wood, canvas, paper and other art surfaces.

3. Allow the gesso to dry. Lightly sand areas that are thick or uneven.

Total Gesso Sealing

1. Tape down the watercolor paper over a smooth wood surface. Use painter's tape and seal the edges.

2. Paint gesso over the entire surface using a 2-inch-wide brush. Allow the gesso to dry completely.

3. Peel the tape, pulling away from the paper at an angle. If you fail to tape the sides of the paper, it will tend to leech gesso to the backside and glue the paper to the board.

4. Paint acrylic and watercolor directly on the gesso surface. Because you have sealed the paper, the watercolor will not be absorbed into the surface of the paper as readily.

Tips & Warnings

• Thin out the gesso with a small amount of water if it is lumpy or dries too quickly.

References

• Aisling: Gesso
• MM Window To Art: Watercolor Painting: The Joy of Erasing